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Environmental Impacts of Minimally Processed Refrigerated Fruits and Vegetables’ Industry

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Minimally Processed Refrigerated Fruits and Vegetables

Part of the book series: Food Engineering Series ((FSES))

Abstract

The fruit and vegetable processing sector is one of the major water-intensive sectors of the food industry. The life cycle assessment (LCA) studies revealed that the environmental burden associated with the fresh-cut industry is heavily influenced by the processing phase, mainly the washing and packing operations. Washing and sanitation operations are the major concern as almost 90% of the total water consumed is used for washing and rinsing operation. The fruit and vegetable processing sector is one of the sectors of the food industry for which the European Commission (EC) Council Directive 96/61/EC on Integrated Pollution Prevention and Control (IPPC) is laying down measures to reduce emissions in water. The management of wastewater and wastewater quality is at most importance, because the main industrial impact on water resources is due to the highly polluted wastewater discharges rather than the amount of water used. Therefore, there is a need for developing eco-efficient innovative technologies that will aid in reducing water consumption and wastewater generation rates and improving the wastewater quality in the fruit and vegetable processing industry.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. TÜBİTAK Marmara Research Center, Material Institute, 21, 41470, Gebze, Kocaeli, Turkey

    Hülya Ölmez

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  1. Hülya Ölmez
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Correspondence to Hülya Ölmez .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Mogan International Research Center, Gölbaşı Ankara, Turkey

    Fatih Yildiz

  2. Department of Nutrition and Food Science, University of Maryland, College Park, Maryland, USA

    Robert C. Wiley

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Ölmez, H. (2017). Environmental Impacts of Minimally Processed Refrigerated Fruits and Vegetables’ Industry. In: Yildiz, F., Wiley, R. (eds) Minimally Processed Refrigerated Fruits and Vegetables. Food Engineering Series. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4939-7018-6_22

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